Blogger: Rachelle Gardner
As you know, agents aren’t able to sell every book we decide to represent. But the decision to stop trying to sell a book is always a tough one. We’ve already put a lot of work into it, and we probably really like the client. When do we know it’s time to quit and move on?
Here are a few reasons we might give up:
1. Out of Options
We’ve exhausted our list of editor contacts and don’t know of any more viable prospects among advance-and-royalty-paying publishers.
2. Poor Response
The general feedback from editors was negative or lackluster, and the project never even made it past the editor’s desk to the editorial meeting or the pub board. (As opposed to situations where editors loved it but couldn’t get it approved.)
3. Market Concerns
The market reality turns out to be different than we expected—last month everyone was buying vampires and this month we can’t give them away. We don’t see the situation changing anytime soon.
4. We Were Wrong
We realize we were probably wrong about the project. We thought it was “saleable” but it’s not selling and in discussing it with editors, we realize they have some good points and maybe this one’s not going to cut it.
There could be other reasons, or combinations of the above, but these are the main ones.
The decision to give up on a project is related to another difficult question: If we’re done with the project…
Are we also done with the client?
Again it depends on a number of factors:
1. Does the client have a saleable body of work?
2. Are the client’s other works any better, or do they suffer from whatever weakness that kept the first one from selling?
3. Does the agent still have enthusiasm for selling this writer and do they believe they can do it?
Whatever the agent decides, this is never an easy crossroads. Being a good businessperson and a good steward of our limited time and resources sometimes requires letting something go. I wish it weren’t that way!
Q4U: Do these seem like legitimate reasons for an agent to drop a project or client? Can you think of other reasons?
Tweetables:
If an agent gives up on a project, do they give up on the author too? Click to tweet.
What makes an agent wave the white flag of surrender? Find out the reasons. Click to tweet.
Every agent’s least favorite thing: having to give up on a project. Click to tweet.
What happens when an agent realizes they were wrong to take on a project? Click to tweet.
There are a lot of reasons an agent gives up. When an agent only hits 25 options and gives up- it’s time to find a new agent.
I think timing also plays a critical role for all three- the writer, agent, and publisher. In a tight economy everyone would bank on the sure thing than one that might have possibilities also.
It doesn’t mean the agent is not working their butts off. A good agent is worth twice their weight in gold. Being wrong happens. It’s heart breaking when it does.
What do you mean 25 options? Can you clarify?
Jo, if it’s a CBA book, you’d be lucky to hit 25 options. It’s quite a limited field, and not every book is appropriate to submit to every publisher.
Rachelle, TQ for a thought-provoking blog today! Makes me sit up and think — hmm, the road could lead to a dead end. But like that old adage say, we pray for the best, and prepare for the worst.
“2. Are the client’s other works any better, or do they suffer from whatever weakness that kept the first one from selling?”
This is when I ask whether it helps for an unpublished writer to not limit herself to one genre. Is it possible that the first ms shopped around wasn’t in the writer’s best genre, and that perhaps her voice was really in another genre?
“1. Does the client have a saleable body of work?”
I’ve read that agents would prefer unpublished writers focus on writing in one genre. And then I read about published authors writing in multiple genres with success. Some of them write in multiple genres to begin with, but some of them dried up in one genre, and moved on to a new one.
Thinking of Plan B if the first ms sinks, does it make sense for unpublished writers to try writing in more than one genre?
Since I read widely and enjoy novels in several genres, I’ve been writing in more than one genre over the years. I love writing thrillers and 18th century fiction, but for summer days, I have practiced, without anyone knowing, on contemporary fiction because the entire series popped into my head one day while I was on vacation. I never expect to publish any of my practice manuscripts because I want to focus on my thriller and colonial, BUT suppose my thriller dies at the doorsteps of publishers, isn’t there a possibility I could always say to my agent (assuming God provides me an agent some day), “Well, how about my colonial my contemporary mss?”
“3. Does the agent still have enthusiasm for selling this writer and do they believe they can do it?”
What about self-publishing at this point? I guess it’s time to read Rachelle’s ebook about publishing choices…
🙂
Jan, you bring up some interesting questions for me. I’ve been afraid to stray into other genres because I didn’t want to monkey with branding.
When I first started writing, I began with only one genre, the genre whose books I read the most (Joseph Finder said that to figure out what you should write, find the genre in which you read the most in).
Summer came around and I needed a break from staring at the same old ms for months and months. So I gave myself a few weeks off to write something totally different from the genre I was working on, but as soon as I began I just couldn’t stop writing — the ideas just flowed and flowed until I finished the entire draft. I cried and laughed with my characters. I had so much fun. But it was still only a practice manuscript, to be stored away never to see the light of day… unless I need it as Plan B. I feel better having something to fall back on.
But having said all that, I’m trying to get published in ANY genre LOL, so I want to be teachable. When I find the right agent, I’m going to listen to her, and prayerfully do everything she says to get published. If she says stick to one genre, I will. If she says show me what you’ve got and she picks the best manuscript out of my basket, whatever she picks out is the genre I’ll go with. I still believe that the seasoned agent knows of what she speaks. And if I want to be published, I’d better listen and learn.
As for branding, the reader knows. In the merging media of today, readers are savvy enough. E.g. I read Brad Meltzer’s thrillers, but he also writes comic books and non-fiction. That’s 3 different genres. I don’t read any of his other stuff except thrillers, but since he is able to keep up his production of one thriller a year, readers don’t notice how spread out he is.
Perhaps that’s what agents are concerned about — whether the author can keep up with marketing her books if she is spread too thin across many genres. If each has a different production timeline, the author could have many ragged days.
Jan, it seems like the pre published stage is the ideal time to be writing in different genres. That way, when a prospective agent, or publisher asks what else you’ve been working on, you can share your other options with them.
Good point about when to diversify the writing portfolio. Since the prepublished stage has less pressure, perhaps this is when we can explore genres. I can see that as an unpublished writer, I still have the freedom to set my own deadlines. I decide what to write, when, and where, and how. For now LOL.
You bring up some really good points, Jan.
I guess most writers have stories or styles which are more reflective of other genres than the genre they usually write, but whether or not we choose to seek to get those published seems to be what it comes down to.
Even those who don’t write in other genres probably want to, like Cheryl stated.
You bring up self-publishing, which might, indeed, be a solution to this. If one of the considerations an author has is their market visibility for one genre like Cheryl mentioned, self-pubbing might be a way to keep ones’ market visibility in the traditional genre one writes in, while engaging in a new market both in regards to genre and the overall market.
Readers, I’d say, wouldn’t be confused about an author writing in different genres, as long as the author makes it clear, for example, that the self-pubbed e-books are a bonus: that this particular genre, and this particular market (e-books) is a way for the author to have fun trying new stuff, and a way for readers to have one of their favorite authors’ give their take on a different genre.
This way, the author keeps their different writing to different markets, and limits whatever confusion readers might have.
Well, guess what? Rachelle “answered” my questions regarding writing in multiple genres in her blog on variety on her website today… http://www.rachellegardner.com/2013/03/make-a-living-as-a-writer-part-2/
Joel Rosenberg writes both suspense and non-fiction using his own name in both genres. His readers aren’t confused.
I think it’s kinder to cut someone free than to keep stringing them along when there’s no viable future together, to paraphrase Dear Abby. I would trust an experienced agent to know when enough’s enough without giving up too soon.
Re genres, I’ve written both fiction and nonfiction, unpublished in both. Recently I spoke to an agent who seemed mildly interested in my novel, but lit up like a firefly when I mentioned a nonfiction project I’d worked on in the past but had abandoned while working on the novel. So I pulled the nonfiction project out of mothballs and sent him both proposals. It feels a bit like flinging projects at the wall to see what sticks.
“It feels a bit like flinging projects at the wall to see what sticks.”
Indeed, but that’s what the whole industry does, from writers to agents to publishers.
Instead of the only way that the industry listens to readers being, “Okay, that genre is successful, so I’ll write / represent / publish books like that” until the audience gets bored with every other book either being in the genre, or influenced by the trends of the genre, perhaps publishers should be more bold and search for authors and stories which aren’t easily copied by the competition……
If the writer/agent relationship works well, it is a shame to lose the connection based on one unsuccessful sale. People make mistakes. Misjudging a novel’s salability appears, at least to me, much more likely than misjudging a writer’s overall ability, especially given changing market trends. Staying on top of “what’s hot” before it “gets hot” is like trying to nail down Jell-O. Last year I attended a lecture focused on market trends – total eye opener. The best piece of advice I came away: trends come and go, but good formula writing (with a modern spin) improves both sale probability and career longevity. Today’s vampire is tomorrow’s mullet. 😉
Wow, this is enlightening. Your reasons for dropping a project or a client do make sense. I’m curious, if you come to the conclusion that you may need to drop a client, do you talk with him/her about the reasons why?
I had an agent give up on me after failing to sell my manuscript. I had another manuscript ready but she was through with me.
I got a new agent, and the new manuscript sold at auction. Sometimes an agent and writer just aren’t right for each other. It’s unfortunate there are few avenues for finding out about each other before entering into a contract.
Curious question pertaining on giving up on the author.
What if the come out with something new taking previous considerations to heart? Would you be willing to look at their new work? Would you take them back if they improved with a new work that you thought didn’t suffer as the previous ones did?
Heather, as a writer I want to reverse that question. Why would you want to go back to an agent who had previously failed to sell your work and had given you the heave-ho?
Maybe it’s the season or weather or market fluctuations (genres cycle in and out all the time) that cause the “no match” with a publisher. I think an author and her agent should always part on good terms.
I wouldn’t take it personally. The writer still has her mss, and the fact that she finished writing them is her own personal trophy.
What I’m more concerned about is whether all possible genres in the author’s back pockets are exhausted before an agent gives up on the writer.
I hate to think of an agent deciding that they are done with a client, but these reasons all seem legit to me. Must be an incredibly difficult decision. Thanks for sharing about your decision-making process, Rachelle.
I definitely think these are legit reasons to drop a client. If an agent isn’t 100% behind his/her client and ready to support their stories, they won’t be the best promoters for their client’s careers.
BUT I will add that many authors are malleable enough to take those rejections, rectify the problems (whether with their writing itself, or with…say, the subject matter/time period), and produce a book that will meet the specifications better, all the while retaining that voice that drew the agent to them in the first place.
As a writer who was represented by two agent failures in succession–people who tied up my work for over two years–I would add this: what person in his or her right mind would be interested in continuing to do business with someone who had demonstrated either such bad judgment in choosing work to represent, or no skill in selling that work? Either way, the agent is a dud, and the writer should drop him–or her–like a bad habit.
Indeed, you bring up the other aspect of the situation.
The partnership should involve communication between both agent and author. Frankly, the questions Rachelle asked shouldn’t even need to be asked in the first place.
Because an author should have already asked him/herself, and talked to their agent, to see if:
1. Does the agent have any similar work sold, and if they do, what are the reasons this work is not selling?
2. Would the agent be able to reasonably be able to sell ones’ other work, or does the agents’ business ability suffer from whatever weakness that kept the first one from selling?
3. Does the writer still have enthusiasm for working with the agent and do they believe they can either sell the work, or any other work the writer has?
Excellent points, Larry.
Selling books is so subjective, there’s often no clear reason why one sells and another doesn’t. If the agent/author partnership isn’t working, it might be best to end it.
I agree, Elissa. Part of what I took from Rachelles’ post was that it seemed like the hypothetical agent had absolutely no input from their writer / buisness partner; as if the agent was doing their job, and doing it admirably, but the writer was either not involved with the process (strategizing with their agent, discussing what ways to possibly make the manuscript appealing to acquisitions editors without fundamentally altering the story /theme /etc.) or was left out of the process.
That’s what seemed to be was missing from Rachelles’ post, how the author works with (or should work with) the agent when it is hard to sell the manuscript.
Pointing out how if a writer isn’t involved with the process, or how a lack of communication could easily be one of the reasons resulting in a writer and agent parting ways, though, might be misconstrued as Rachelle blaming the hypothetical author in the scenario she gave, so I can understand why she didn’t mention it.
as the author of 11 novels, all of them completely different in tone and subject matter, i’d be depressed if an agent gave up on me because she couldn’t sell the first book. it seems very important to convey to your agent that you have more books written and describe them in enough detail to stir interest. obviously, if you were signed on the first time, the agent knows you can write/think. since there may be a book in your ouvre that will sell, it is your job to convince the agent that your work is not a lost cause, but rather a garden full of things some people don’t like and other things people do like. finally, keep writing.
I don’t have a literary agent. However, I do see the value in obtaining one. And am currently attempting to do so.
Does it seem legitimate reasons?
Yes.
Other reasons?
Possibly a personality conflict.
Personality plays a big role for me, too, Leanne.
I like your level-headed post, Rachelle. It might not be what I like to hear, but it could be reality for me one day. Being prepared with knowing the reasons why an agent might walk away will help ease the pain if it happens. Thanks for sharing your insight.
Hi Rachelle,
So I have a question, then. I’m an author currently submitting queries and proposals, but I am being repeatedly instructed to query/propose ONLY one book, and NOT to include information about the rest of the series, nor my other completed mss, etc.
Wouldn’t it make more sense to query about the author and what they have to offer, rather than a single book? I mean, with agents, aren’t you representing the AUTHOR, and not just a book?
And wouldn’t this eliminate some of the questions you asked above? If you know that the author has more books to offer, if you know they’re capable of being more than just a one-hit wonder, wouldn’t you want to find that out up front, so you CAN feel comfortable taking them on as an agent?
I can sorta understand the one-book proposal from a publishers point of view, but as an agent, I’d think you’d want to know up front what the author has invested themselves in, so you’d know better about choosing to invest in them, too.
Anyway, it’s something I’ve been curious about for a while.
Along the same line, can a writer submit different mss in different genres to different agents? For example if the writer has one regency ms and one YA ms but the agent who handles regency doesn’t handle YA. Or should the writer find an agent who handles all the genres she writes in?
Which opens up a can of worms. I read that it would be preferable for a writer to stick to one agent, and that makes sense to me, but what if the writer writes in two genres, one of which the agent doesn’t handle (e.g. some agents who handle novels don’t handle non-fiction). Then what to do?
That makes sense. Thanks, Larry.
For what it’s worth, I assume the reason agents only ask for one book at a time is so to avoid a writer repeatedly offering them a different manuscript to consider.
In other words, it’s a way for the agent to say, “I think I have a grasp of what your ability and markability as a writer is, if I don’t want to represent you for this book, I probably don’t want to represent you for any other book,” without seemingly being a jerk.
That way, if an agent actually does want to possibly consider an author, but just not for the manuscript the author originally queried, the agent can let the writer know that, and that query they are interested in from the author they are interested in won’t just get added to the slush pile.
Such good information to know, Rachelle. Thank you for another great post.
There is always that personal aspect, but when it comes down to it, writing and agenting are businesses. If something isn’t working, it’s time to move on. Hopefully for the writer, she’s already moved on to the next project and isn’t waiting around to see if the first one is viable.
One of the things I love about this blog is the REALITY of a writing life. Pursuing publishing is like any of life’s journey. Getting an agent is such a big deal. But then the project has to sell. And then… And then… I appreciate the truth of this post and only hope it isn’t going to be MY truth.
Hi Charise, glad to see you, and your thoughts, in this space. 😉
It’s all just business. If a writer/agent partnership isn’t working, the best business decision is to move on. Even when querying an agent, one should always look at the possibility that sometimes things could happen that are not favorable for the project. If the project is dropped or an agent has to move on, it’s fair. Unless of course it is personal. And if that’s the case, the writer should consider it a blessing. In the end, the writer’s success does not depend of hard luck of a great agent, but the diligence and persistence of the hard working writer. Book sales will always keep an agent smiling. And it is the people(readers) who makes the partnership with the agent and author go round. Thanks Rachelle. Oh, and writing for multiple genres is not a bad idea. Just in case one project is dropped because an agent thought it didn’t do as well as it should. Writers should keep writing, and learning the craft no matter what.
This is an excellent post. I have an agent right now, and if she hit a dead end with my work, I would want to know, for one, so I’m not still waiting and hoping, and for another, so I can get better based on what she has learned about either my writing or the market.
The first agency I sent my book to replied personally telling me my topic was good but my writing was the problem-it wasn’t strong enough for the subject. That was great because instead of deciding I just needed a different agent, it was their problem, etc., etc., I became a better writer.
That’s not a bad thing!
Congratulations Kimberly.
I have had three well-known agents who dropped me after a year of trying to sell my books. My last agent refused to give up and six months ago we got a 2-book contract with a small publishers who offered a better advance than most big ones do these days. I’m so grateful to her for sticking with me long after another agent would have given up.
She has just told me the she is not going to continue shopping another book of mine because she is getting reactions that are all the same from the few publishers she sent it to. The interesting thing about it is that it is not a book I feel a strong connection. It was never my favorite although beta readers liked it a lot. So the fact that she is suggesting that we e-publish it sits fine with me.
Reading all these comments I see that there are so many different agent stories.
Don’t get me started. My last agent “stepped” away from my project after not being able to sell it. Consequently he ruined my chances for my new agent to sell the book because he didn’t have the contacts that he promised he did (despite being with a top agency). What annoys me about agents is this idea of their limited time. I find leads for my agent, and what, he/she doesn’t have the time to send an e-mail out? I wish I could see the agent’s point of view on this but I just can’t. There is never a reason to give up on a project if the writer hasn’t given up. This points to a glaring issue with the whole publishing system. First of all I think it’s insanity that Random House has all these rules that you can only submit to one editor here and one editor there. Also, why do we even have to go through an agent? What if one editor would have championed the book at the imprint but the agent’s contact at the same imprint doesn’t like it? Great for the agent and his or her career to keep things cool between editors but the writer gets screwed. I’m sorry. I’m sticking with my current agent because I basically have to finish a whole new project before I can get back into the game, but believe me, I’m never going to be the type of writer that gushes over how much an agent does for me. Please! Thank you by the way for having this blog. It’s a nice place to vent!
My agent was extremely enthusiastic about my book but couldn’t sell it. She said there was no point trying to work on it to improve its chances and her assistant twice refused even to read other work I sent her. Should I consider approaching another agent?